Why Gyms can be bad for you
To help make my point a little clearer I will describe a regular day for an average person who, for arguments sake, exercises at their local gym at the end of the working day.
7.00am Get out of bed and get ready
7.30am Sit down and have breakfast
8.00am Sit down and travel to work
9.00am Sit down and start work
12.30pm Sit down to have some lunch
1.30pm Sit back down at you desk and work
5.00pm Sit down and travel to the gym
6.00pm Start your gym workout
7.30pm Arrive back home to sit down relax and have dinner
Anyway I am sure you can see a pattern here: all this sitting is not good for our health, posture and core. So a healthy trip to the gym should be a healthy active part of the day that puts a stop to all that inactive sitting. But before you pat yourself on the back let’s take a look at a typical workout at the gym.
What is a typical workout?
Treadmill 20 minutes
Leg Press 2 sets of 15 reps
Chest Press Machine 2 sets of 15 reps
Lat Pulldown Machine 2 sets of 15 reps
Shoulder Press Machine 2 sets of 15 reps
Crunches 2 sets of 15 reps
Reverse Crunches 2 sets of 15 reps
Finish with a Full Body Stretch
Well, it’s not the most strenuous workout but probably quite typical of the average gym goer who wants to improve their health.
So what is wrong with that?
The biggest problem I have with the gym is that after a long day that consists mainly of sitting down, we then go to a gym to sit down and exercise in the same position. How absolutely crazy is that and completely useless if you want to improve your health! If you take a look at all the exercises, the only one that is fully effective and which avoids the seated position, is the treadmill. This is the only exercises that takes the body and uses it as it should be used through a full range of motion with little support. However even the treadmill is ill equipped to really get the most out of your body. Most people will use the argument that if you use free weights it is much more functional as the movement is not as linear or controlled as it is with machines. This is true – however it is only a mild improvement if you use a bench to lie on or sit down on to perform the free weight exercises.
What should you do then?
Now I am not saying that you shouldn’t train in a gym but you should consider learning some different exercises that use the Swiss Ball, Cables and more full body movements. These types of exercise will help to bring your whole body in and get you off your bum and training those all important core muscles. We have some great exercises for you to learn at our new Exercise Library that should help you to try out some new routines.
Get some variety
Secondly don’t make your life boring by spending every training session in the gym. Try going to some classes as the majority of these classes get you up and moving. The classes are fun and enjoyable and help teach you to move your body as a whole, which at the end of the day is much more functional than sitting in a machine and pushing the handles away from you like some sort of robotic toy.
And don’t forget sport
Finally why not add a sport to one of your weekly workout sessions? Sport is very good for you and by adding that competitive edge you will push yourself harder than when you are sitting in a gym. It is also vastly more enjoyable especially if you find a sport that you are good at. Don’t worry there are plenty of active sports and games so you should be able to find one you enjoy. Please remember though that if you play a sport that is one side dominant (e.g. golf) you can cause yourself weaknesses in your body. Playing sport once a week shouldn’t prove too problematic, but if you want to play more often I would always suggest that you learn to play with either hand or feet to help keep the pressures and development even.
Summary
Remember the old saying ‘variety is the spice of life’ and if you spend most of your time sitting down, don’t you think it is about time that you found some different positions for your workout routine?
Let us know your exercise routines and how you get your whole body trained. Maybe you disagree and you are a massive gym fan who can’t see the problems with gyms at all. We are open to all opinions and promote conversation and debate on the matter.
Good luck with your training.
March 9th, 2009 at 11:33 am
I agree, I still use the gym but only once a week. The rest of the time I am playing squash and football. Much more fun!
March 11th, 2009 at 6:54 am
This is an eye-opener I really enjoyed reading this.
March 15th, 2009 at 7:36 am
Thats why I love dance class in the gym. Nothing beats weight training and wrap it up with dance class. Lucky to have gym with dance classes